TaxCoach Briefs:    October 9, 2008

Volume 3, Number 40

*****Attention All-Stars and Hall of Famers***** Our next teleseminar will be Tuesday, October 14, at 4PM ET. We'll be discussing Robert Cialdini's new book, Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to be Persuasive. Everyone on the call gets a free copy of the book. So don't miss it!

TaxCoach Briefs archives.

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MARKETING MINUTE (EAL)
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LESSONS FROM SARAH PALIN

Keith and I are proud that the TaxCoach community includes members in all 49 states -- including one in Wasilla, Alaska. (Please, would someone in Hawaii join already?!) So when Senator John McCain nominated Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be his Vice-Presidential running mate, I immediately emailed our Alaskan to ask if the Governor was a client.

His answer, sadly, was "no." But now it looks like she should have been. Palin and her snowmobile-racing, moose-shooting, salmon-fishing husband appear headed for tax trouble, and of course the story has lessons for all of us as well.

The Governor and "First Dude" (as she nicknamed him) hired H&R Block to prepare their 2006-2007 returns. They hesitated before disclosing their returns, and now face scrutiny over three issues:

  1. Should they owe tax on $17,000 the state paid as "travel allowance" for her?
  2. Should they owe tax on $43,000 the state paid as "travel allowance" for her husband and children?
  3. Should they have deducted $9,000 in losses from her husband's snowmobile racing activity?

After the Palins released their returns, they sought counsel from a former Assistant U.S. Attorney General, who released an opinion letter stating they were entitled to rely on the state's determination that the expense reimbursements didn't constitute income. Nevertheless, the Palins face negligence penalties under Code Section 6662. Even their attorney faces possible sanctions from the IRS Office of Professional Responsibility.

(As if that isn't trouble enough, her poll numbers are falling faster than the stock market!)

Way back on August 3, 2006 -- just 10 weeks after launching these Briefs -- we discussed how the Rolling Stones used offshore trusts to pay just 1.6% in tax on 242 million British pounds of income over a 20-year period. We urged you to tie your marketing to the day's news to hitch a free ride on the attention your prospects pay to that news.

Since then, we've offered several more examples, including Barry Bonds' record-breaking home run ball (taxable to the lucky catcher) and Al Gore's Nobel prize proceeds (not taxable because he arranged beforehand to donate winnings to an environmental charity).

But this may be the best news tie-in marketing opportunity yet. You can take advantage of the headlines without taking a stand on Palin's positions. (And to boot, let's face it -- as competitors, don't you just love the egg on H&R Block's face?)

Quickly, the lessons:

There's probably a lesson too, somewhere, on franchised tax-prep operations. I'll be darned if I can find it, but you might want to look yourself.

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MEMBER EVENT (EAL)
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"POWER USER" ROUNDTABLES

The first "PowerUser" reviews are in. As Keith and I sit in our hotel in San Jose, preparing for tomorrow's session, I can tell you that if the rest of the Roundtables go as well, we'll continue hosting them for a long while.

Fifteen of us met yesterday at the elegant Coto de Caza Golf & Racquet Club in Mission Viejo, California. (Those of you who follow reality television will recognize Coto as the planned community that houses Bravo's Real Housewives of Orange County.)

The Mapquest directions that Keith and I used sent us to an unmanned gate, brandishing some pretty angry-looking tire spikes against uninvited guests. So we had to sneak in behind a landscaper's pickup truck. Fortunately, we were the only ones with that problem (or at least the only ones willing to admit it), since everyone else seemed to have relied on the club's directions and breezed right through the front gate.

We all enjoyed the setting, a tasteful and beautifully sunny room with 15 chairs around a single table, and a parade of staff to keep us fed and watered.

We started by discussing why to make tax-planning the foundation of any accounting or financial marketing. Keith and I roleplayed how to close tax-planning engagements, then walked through the tools and templates TaxCoach gives you to price, promote, and deliver services. We put two of the participants "on the hot seat" to offer the group's take on their specific business-development challenges, and finished with a wide-ranging Mastermind discussion. It was a closed-door, "off the record" chance to share what's working now, for real TaxCoach members and real clients. And it was a blast.

At the end of the day, we asked everyone what they would say to a colleague who asked if they should attend PowerUsers. Here are some of the responses:

If you want to manage your practice instead of your practice managing you, attend a PowerUsers seminar.
Ken Blake, Brea, CA

[Attend] only if you want to increase your income!
Steve Schuneman, Las Vegas, NV

You will earn more in one hour by using the things learned in the session than you would have earned by staying at work the whole day of the training.
Dominique Molina, San Diego, CA

Finally, consider this from a financial planner who doesn't even prepare taxes:

If you can't make 10 times what you paid for the training at your next few appointments you should stop selling.
Charlie Jewett, Escondido, CA

Are you looking for insights and strategies that can transform your practice? If so, there are still four remaining roundtables you can attend:

Ready to sign up? Two more members claimed seats just today! So don't wait. Click here for a detailed agenda and register now!

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DID YOU KNOW . . .
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. . . that TaxCoach lets you download the Summary Report into MS Word or other any other word processor? This feature lets you add your own formatting, as well as edit the text, prioritize the highlights, add emphasis and other notes, etc..

The Summary Report is so important as a discussion document, or as a 'teaser,' that tailoring it specifically to a single client can really help your sales and delivery efforts. On the Reports screen, under the orange 'Generate Summary' button, just check the box entitled 'Format:DOC' and save the file to your computer when you click on 'Generate.'

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We're happy to answer your questions on TaxCoach content, features, or marketing. While we give first priority to our All-Star and Hall of Fame members, we work to answer all questions. For best response, email support@taxcoachsoftware.com. If we can't answer immediately, or we think the answer will be useful to all of our members, we'll publish it (anonymously) here in the 'Member Q & A' section of TaxCoach Briefs.

Regards,

Ed Lyon
Keith VandeStadt
www.taxcoachsoftware.com
(513) 321-2820

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